Productivity Software

Next week's Tech Tuesday will be over 3 applications:

• Apple Mail
• Address Book
• iCal

These 3 applications work together to organize your work environment. Many of you are currently using Entourage. While Entourage is a good program, the updates for it, (like Internet Explorer) are becoming a rare commodity. We have been noticing more and more problems with Entourage. While using 3 applications to replace 1 seems like overload, it's not as complicated as it sounds.

Personally, I've been using these 3 programs to organize my life for the past 2 years. I have used other programs before, but these are by far the most powerful and (more importantly) the easiest I have ever used. And the great part about it is the ability to sync with other mobile devices, like your iPod, or cell phone.

This will be a Tech Tuesday you will not want to miss. If you want a sneek peek at what these programs can do, check out the following links:

Apple Mail
Address Book
iCal

Enjoy, and I'll see you on Tuesday. Bring your laptop, and your iPod if you have one!

New Apple Store

Well, I fought the crowd and went to the Apple Store Grand Opening on Saturday at MacArthur Mall. My wife actually made fun of me the whole way there saying I was going to be the only geek there. Boy was she wrong! There were LOTS of us geeks there. For about 2 hours after it opened, there was a steady line of people waiting to get in to get a sneek peek at the store as well as a free T-shirt. Nothing like free stuff to draw a crowd! Anyway, I snapped a picture of it with my cell phone for your viewing pleasure. If you've ever been to the Apple store in Short Pump, this is basically the same thing... just closer! They offer classes throughout the year as well as special nights for schools to showcase some of the work they do. I'm trying to coordinate something for us in the near future, so if your class has done a really cool project using Apple Technology, let me know, and we can set up a night for you to showcase it to the public.

Digital Divide?

Here's an interesting article I found from Wired News. I must say that I was shocked to see the statistics of how many minority students used the internet at home. To quote the article:

"Two of every three white students — 67 percent — use the internet, but less than half of blacks and Hispanics do, according to federal data released Tuesday. For Hispanics the figure is 44 percent; for blacks, it's 47 percent."

Less than half is almost scary. Think of all the opportunities they are missing out on! Teachers, we need to change this statistic! While we can't force our way into the homes and ask parents to buy computers, we can stress to our students the importance of research on the internet. The library computers are free for students to use here at school as well as several computers at the public library when school hours are over. There should be no reason why any child is without the resources to succeed. Don't forget to share your own thoughts by clicking on the comment button. We'd all love to hear your opinion on this one.